The Texas Flood

by Patrick Rhamey

I've gotten questions from people about how this terrible flooding was even possible, and I've seen some despicable finger-pointing and misinformation on social media by those who have no familiarity with the area. As background, my grandparents' place was situated between Heart O' the Hills camp and Mystic – a three-quarter-mile stretch of river running South to North. In Middle and High School, every time I visited, one of my favorite activities was to travel up and down the river in a canoe until we either couldn't go further or ran out of energy. I've been up and down that stretch of river between the two camps more times than I can count and have probably travelled the stretch from one end to the other in a single trip more than most anybody – a guess I feel confident about because in many places, you'd have to get out and carry or drag your canoe because the water running over the limestone rock bed was so shallow. There are a couple of stretches there between the two camps that are extremely difficult to get through - something to keep in mind as you watch search and rescue efforts.

A view from the grandparents’ place. Camp Mystic is just down the hill to the left.

Traveling back and forth along the Guadalupe, whether with siblings, cousins, or friends (and eventually a girlfriend that would one day become my wife), we'd do things like fish (in some secluded deeper spots along the cypress trees on the riverbank, you could catch bass the size of a toaster), swim, or see what we could find. As mentioned in the media, flooding in that area is frequent, and you often find things the river washed downstream. There was even an old (probably 1930s) rusted-out car back in one of the more wooded parts of the river. Throughout that stretch of the Guadalupe, though, it is uniquely beautiful. On the east bank, in particular, there are enormous cliffs filled with small holes and caves that drop straight down into the crystal-clear water below.

Now traveling up and down the river between the two camps, sometimes, depending on who I was with, we'd get bold and try to make it through and past the camps to see how far we could get. This was pretty easy heading downriver past Heart O' the Hills. Perhaps they just didn't care about a few kids paddling through. Still, the river was a little more easy-going that way. Because the bank was fairly steep on the camp's side, you couldn't see us traveling along unless you were standing right by the river. So, we'd paddle through and, a few times, made it as far as Crider's Rodeo.

This wasn't the case as we headed upriver to Camp Mystic. There's about a four-foot dam on the downstream side of the Mystic property that creates a little lake. So, to get past it, you'd either have to (1) get out and carry the canoe around and put it in on the other side, which was trespassing, and, though children, as Texans we know you don't go trespassing, or (2) get out of the canoe and, while standing in the middle of the river, pick up the canoe and lift it over the edge of the dam. Now, being the very thoughtful teenage amateur lawyers that we were, it was our contention that doing so was not, in fact, trespassing, as the Guadalupe was a navigable waterway. Therefore we were free to travel as far as we liked (dam be damned) so long as we didn't disembark up the bank onto anyone's property. We had a fair amount of commitment to this principle of navigation, given the effort it took to lug a canoe over the dam while dodging the occasional water moccasin (which, at one point, middle school me was fairly sure was about the size of a python). In hindsight, it was probably not the safest course of action.

We never made it much further than the Mystic dam. I found this particularly annoying because there was a great fishing hole filled with the biggest bass you'd ever seen on the opposite side of Mystic, just under the highway 39 bridge near the main entrance. Inevitably, and quite immediately, we'd get run out after getting over the top of the dam - in most cases by a man that obnoxious teenager me referred to as "some old guy" – in hindsight, likely camp director Dick Eastland. Dick Eastland lost his life last week trying to save girls from the flood waters. While his brief, momentary interactions with me were not exactly friendly given my encroachments, the fact that he would often run us off every summer at the drop of a hat is just one small, anecdotal example of how diligent he was in his role as guardian of that camp.

One of the things you'll notice as you make that journey upriver toward Mystic is that the river narrows substantially. The terrain is remarkably different from when you get further down the river toward Kerrville, particularly after the North and South forks of the Guadalupe meet: the banks in that direction are less steep and widen out a fair bit.

The river at Mystic also runs West to East until just past the dam, where it collides with the east side cliffs and ridgeline I mentioned earlier and turns northward. At that point, the river forms a slight bottleneck. Steep cliffs rise up, and in portions of the river, it gets very, very shallow – if it hadn't rained recently, we're talking an inch at most. It was easily the most treacherous bit of the river in my stomping grounds: you'd slip and slie on the limestone rock as you dragged your canoe to the deeper spots, inevitably ending up beat up and bruised along the way. What this means is that as water is traveling down that river, there’s nowhere for it to go but up. It can’t diffuse across a wider area as it did downstream. As it slams into that ridgeline and bottleneck, that problem just gets exponentially worse.

While I know the stretch between those two camps about as well as anyone, obviously, many people know the camps themselves far better than I do. But, if memory serves, the cabins at Mystic were well away from the river, uphill and nestled up against that same steep ridge I mentioned well before it meets the river. They weren't anywhere close to the water. I see numerous social media posts about how it was negligent to have the cabins there or trying to cast blame on the camps or the National Weather Service. You don't understand flash floods in that part of the country, and you don't know what the river is like in that section of the Guadalupe. To say they should have anticipated that perfect confluence of weather, topography, and timing, all in the middle of the night to cause a tragedy in that particular spot is absurd. To borrow from Laura Seay: "I get that when a tragedy occurs people want to look for someone to blame. The reality is that sometimes terrible things happen and it's nobody's fault. And sitting with that awful reality, trying to help survivors as best we can, and not losing our empathy is all we can do."

I love that little stretch of river. As an adult, I later got married there. It's heartbreaking to see the pain, suffering, and death happening along it. With a daughter about the same age as those lost campers, whom I had the opportunity to take fishing on the same little stretch of river from my childhood before my grandparents moved away, I can only imagine what their parents are going through. Please donate to the Community Foundation of the Texas Hill Country (https://cftexashillcountry.fcsuite.com/.../create/fund...).

Week 14 Network Ranking

by Patrick Rhamey

If you want the 4 best teams based solely on their total body of work, this is the ranking.

Obviously, there’s more that goes into it for the committee than that. There’s money. There’s politics. But here’s the ranking based on body of work. No assumptions and no priors going into the season, this is where we end up.

Top 25 (Explanation; Full Ranking)

  1. Michigan (nc)

  2. Florida State (+1)

  3. Washington (+1)

  4. Ohio State (+1)

  5. Penn State (+1)

  6. Oregon (+1)

  7. Liberty (+1)

  8. Georgia (-6)

  9. Missouri (nc)

  10. Ole Miss (nc)

  11. Alabama (nc)

  12. Texas (nc)

  13. LSU (nc)

  14. Oklahoma (+2)

  15. Notre Dame (nc)

  16. Iowa (+1)

  17. James Madison (+1)

  18. Tulane (-4)

  19. Tennessee (nc)

  20. Utah (nc)

  21. Clemson (nc)

  22. Toledo (nc)

  23. NC State (nc)

  24. Kentucky (nc)

  25. Oregon State (nc)

Week 13 Network Ranking

by Patrick Rhamey

Ohio State out, Washington in.

Top 25 (Explanation; Full Ranking)

  1. Michigan (+1)

  2. Georgia (+2)

  3. Florida State (nc)

  4. Washington (+1)

  5. Ohio State (-4)

  6. Penn State (nc)

  7. Oregon (nc)

  8. Liberty (nc)

  9. Missouri (nc)

  10. Ole Miss (nc)

  11. Alabama (nc)

  12. Texas (nc)

  13. LSU (nc)

  14. Tulane (nc)

  15. Notre Dame (nc)

  16. Oklahoma (+1)

  17. Iowa (-1)

  18. James Madison (nc)

  19. Tennessee (+2)

  20. Utah (+2)

  21. Clemson (-1)

  22. Toledo (+3)

  23. NC State (+6)

  24. Kentucky (+13)

  25. Oregon State (-2)

Week 12 Network Ranking

by Patrick Rhamey

Just a reshuffle of the top 4 this week. With Ohio State and Michigan playing each other this weekend, it might clear some space for Washington to move up if they beat Washington State.

Top 25 (Explanation; Full Ranking)

  1. Ohio State (+2)

  2. Michigan (nc)

  3. Florida State (-2)

  4. Georgia (nc)

  5. Washington (nc)

  6. Penn State (+2)

  7. Oregon (nc)

  8. Liberty (+1)

  9. Missouri (+1)

  10. Ole Miss (+1)

  11. Alabama (+1)

  12. Texas (+1)

  13. LSU (+2)

  14. Tulane (nc)

  15. Notre Dame (+4)

  16. Iowa (+2)

  17. Oklahoma (+3)

  18. James Madison (-12)

  19. Louisville (+7)

  20. Clemson (+5)

  21. Tennessee (+1)

  22. Utah (-5)

  23. Oregon State (nc)

  24. North Carolina (nc)

  25. Toledo (+7)

Week 11 Network Ranking

by Patrick Rhamey

Hello Georgia! After defeating Ole Miss, they climb 3 spots into the top 4. Florida State, likewise, seizes the number 1 spot from Ohio State after defeating Miami. James Madison, with its weak schedule, drops down to 6 (and will likely continue to fall) while the lowest ranked undefeated, Liberty, sits at 9, also unlikely to climb further.

UCF beating Oklahoma State has some noteworthy repercussions: OU drops another 3 spots, Texas drops 2, and Alabama stays in place at 12.

Top 25 (Explanation; Full Ranking)

  1. Florida State (+1)

  2. Michigan (+1)

  3. Ohio State (-2)

  4. Georgia (+3)

  5. Washington (nc)

  6. James Madison (-2)

  7. Oregon (+1)

  8. Penn State (-2)

  9. Liberty (nc)

  10. Missouri (+3)

  11. Ole Miss (-1)

  12. Alabama (nc)

  13. Texas (-2)

  14. Tulane (nc)

  15. LSU (nc)

  16. Memphis (nc)

  17. Utah (+1)

  18. Iowa (+1)

  19. Notre Dame (+2)

  20. Oklahoma (-3)

  21. Troy (+2)

  22. Tennessee (nc)

  23. Oregon State (+1)

  24. North Carolina (+5)

  25. Clemson (+8)

Week 10 Network Ranking

by Patrick Rhamey

Not a ton of movement this week, though Georgia continues to creep up. Top 6 see no changes.

Top 25 (Explanation; Full Ranking)

  1. Ohio State (nc)

  2. Florida State (nc)

  3. Michigan (nc)

  4. James Madison (nc)

  5. Washington (nc)

  6. Penn State (nc)

  7. Georgia (+2)

  8. Oregon (-1)

  9. Liberty (+1)

  10. Ole Miss (+1)

  11. Texas (+2)

  12. Alabama (+2)

  13. Missouri (-1)

  14. Tulane (+3)

  15. LSU (nc)

  16. Memphis (+2)

  17. Oklahoma (-1)

  18. Utah (+1)

  19. Iowa (+4)

  20. Kansas (+6)

  21. Notre Dame (nc)

  22. Tennessee (nc)

  23. Troy (+9)

  24. Oregon State (+3)

  25. UCLA (-5)

Week 9 Network Ranking

by Patrick Rhamey

Down falls Oklahoma - and by extension, Texas, Alabama, Ole Miss, etc. Georgia remains behind compared with the popular polls but makes a big leap into the top 10.

As one of the 8 undefeateds, JMU is in the top 4. Note, JMU has a better body of work than Washington, Air Force, Georgia, or Liberty. If they all win out, however, it is likely Georgia (with their much more challenging schedule going forward) and Washington will surpass JMU.

Top 25 (Explanation; Full Ranking):

  1. Ohio State (+3)

  2. Florida State (+1)

  3. Michigan (+2)

  4. James Madison (+3)

  5. Washington (+3)

  6. Penn State (+3)

  7. Oregon (+4)

  8. Air Force (+5)

  9. Georgia (+6)

  10. Liberty (+6)

  11. Ole Miss (-1)

  12. Missouri (nc)

  13. Texas (-11)

  14. Alabama (-8)

  15. LSU (-1)

  16. Oklahoma (-15)

  17. Tulane (nc)

  18. Memphis (+4)

  19. Utah (+4)

  20. UCLA (+4)

  21. Notre Dame (+8)

  22. Tennessee (+4)

  23. Iowa (+4)

  24. USC (+11)

  25. Fresno State (-6)

Week 8 Network Ranking

by Patrick Rhamey

Down goes North Carolina, all the way out of the top 25. That win, then, translates to a big boost for undefeated JMU, which defeated UVA earlier in the season. Penn State also falls out of the top four, replaced by Ohio State.

Top 25 (Explanation; Full Ranking)

  1. Oklahoma (nc)

  2. Texas (nc)

  3. Florida State (+1)

  4. Ohio State (+3)

  5. Michigan (+1)

  6. Alabama (+4)

  7. James Madison (+6)

  8. Washington (nc)

  9. Penn State (-6)

  10. Ole Miss (+1)

  11. Oregon (+7)

  12. Missouri (+2)

  13. Air Force (-1)

  14. LSU (+1)

  15. Georgia (+1)

  16. Liberty (+1)

  17. Tulane (+4)

  18. Wyoming (+1)

  19. Fresno State (+1)

  20. UNLV (+4)

  21. Kentucky (+1)

  22. Memphis (+1)

  23. Utah (+2)

  24. UCLA (+4)

  25. Oregon State (+1)

Week 7 Network Ranking

by Patrick Rhamey

Down goes Washington State (hard). As long as Alabama keeps winning, it’s going to keep making Texas and Oklahoma look pretty good. Meanwhile, Georgia languishes at 16. Why? Well, I’ll put it this way: undefeated JMU has more impressive wins. It’ll shake itself out in the long run, but Georgia hasn’t yet provided any tangible evidence in terms of the quality of their wins for their popular number 1 position.

Top 25 (Explanation; Full Ranking):

  1. Oklahoma (nc)

  2. Texas (nc)

  3. Penn State (+2)

  4. Florida State (+2)

  5. North Carolina (+5)

  6. Michigan (-2)

  7. Ohio State (nc)

  8. Washington (+8)

  9. Iowa (+5)

  10. Alabama (-1)

  11. Ole Miss (+4)

  12. Air Force (+14)

  13. James Madison (+11)

  14. Missouri (+14)

  15. LSU (+15)

  16. Georgia (+5)

  17. Liberty (+3)

  18. Oregon (nc)

  19. Wyoming (+4)

  20. Fresno State (+13)

  21. Tulane (+18)

  22. Kentucky (+10)

  23. Memphis (+13)

  24. UNLV (+23)

  25. Utah (-12)

Week 6 Network Ranking

by Patrick Rhamey

Down goes Texas…but not far. Oklahoma leap-frogs Texas into number 1, but wins by Texas past competitors like Alabama keep it afloat. Meanwhile, Louisville catapults into the 3 spot due to not only beating Notre Dame, but also Georgia Tech’s defeat of Miami (which benefits Ole Miss as well).

Top 25 (Explanation; Full Ranking)

  1. Oklahoma (+13)

  2. Texas (-1)

  3. Louisville (+29)

  4. Michigan (+4)

  5. Penn State (-3)

  6. Florida State (+5)

  7. Ohio State (-3)

  8. Washington State (-5)

  9. Alabama (+4)

  10. North Carolina (-1)

  11. Oregon State (+6)

  12. UCLA (+30)

  13. Utah (+6)

  14. Iowa (+25)

  15. Ole Miss (+13)

  16. Washington (-11)

  17. Notre Dame (-11)

  18. Oregon (-6)

  19. Wisconsin (+4)

  20. Liberty (+5)

  21. Georgia (+6)

  22. USC (-12)

  23. Wyoming (+11)

  24. James Madison (-8)

  25. Duke (-7)

Week 5 Network Ranking

by Patrick Rhamey

Texas remains on top with Penn State jumping into the two spot. Shuffling continues, with Georgia falling further behind the other unbeatens (and some one loss teams) and out of the top 25 due to their weak opponents. As the season continues, week to week changes will diminish. Will be interesting to see who can keep up. Obviously Texas v Oklahoma is the big game this week. Outside of that, Penn State has a bye this week, so we may expect them to fall behind, whereas Washington State plays one loss Utah and Ohio State plays undefeated Maryland. Notre Dame also with an opportunity to rise against undefeated Louisville, but any wins by Notre Dame will also help Ohio State in the network.

Top 25 (Explanation; Full Ranking)

  1. Texas (nc)

  2. Penn State (+10)

  3. Washington State (+3)

  4. Ohio State (+5)

  5. Washington (-1)

  6. Notre Dame (+25)

  7. Missouri (+1)

  8. Michigan (-6)

  9. North Carolina (-6)

  10. USC (+14)

  11. Florida State (+3)

  12. Oregon (-7)

  13. Alabama (-3)

  14. Oklahoma (+1)

  15. Miami (-8)

  16. James Madison (+10)

  17. Oregon State (+20)

  18. Duke (-2)

  19. Utah (-8)

  20. Kentucky (+10)

  21. Kansas State (+2)

  22. Texas A&M (-1)

  23. Wisconsin (+9)

  24. Colorado (-7)

  25. Liberty (-7)

Week 4 Network Ranking

by Patrick Rhamey

A very early ranking. Keep in mind, the network treats all teams as equals in week 0. There are no priors. Then, based on wins and losses, it ranks them accordingly. As such, Georgia is way, way down, as they’ve only beaten teams with no wins, unlike Texas, who has much better wins. Expect shifting quite a bit over the course of the next couple weeks, but, we can expect Texas and Michigan to hold their high positions unless they lose.


Top 25 (Explanation; Full Ranking)

  1. Texas

  2. Michigan

  3. North Carolina

  4. Washington

  5. Oregon

  6. Washington State

  7. Miami

  8. Missouri

  9. Ohio State

  10. Alabama

  11. Utah

  12. Penn State

  13. Rutgers

  14. Florida State

  15. Oklahoma

  16. Duke

  17. Colorado

  18. Liberty

  19. Louisville

  20. Syracuse

  21. Texas A&M

  22. Kansas

  23. Kansas State

  24. USC

  25. Georgia

2023 State of World Liberty Index

by Patrick Rhamey

Disclaimer: data sources used rank freedoms at a 1-2 year lag, so recent political developments are not captured.

The State of World Liberty Index was a combination of indices compiled originally by Nick Wilson in 2006, and I’ve updated that index annually since 2012. My methodology is similar to the original with the following exceptions: I use only the civil liberties portion of Freedom House, economy liberty (Fraser/Heritage) is weighted evenly with social liberty, and the Reporters without Borders Press Freedom Score is of equal weight to each of the Freedom House Civil Liberties sub-components. All changes are done with the purpose of creating the most accurate relative ranking of countries by the degree of liberty (economic and social) enjoyed by the average individual within the state or territory. Note, the ranking is not reflective of, nor directly includes, political or electoral rights. Where data is available, territories or colonies (e.g. Hong Kong) are included.

Also compiled is a ranking on the Conservative-Progressive spectrum, where conservative is more economic liberty relative to social liberty, and progressive is more social liberty relative to economic liberty. This added dimension allows for grouping states by both liberty and ideology, such as Moderate Free (Switzerland) and Moderate Tyranny (Algeria), Progressive Free (Norway) and Progressive Tyranny (Venezuela), and Conservative (somewhat) Free (Hong Kong) and Conservative Tyranny (Eritrea).

A complete ranking, along with past years, is available here: [LINK]

2023 Liberty by Quintile. Colors represent countries grouped by quintiles in order of blue (top 20%), green (20-40%), yellow (40-60%), orange (60-80%), and red (80-100%).

2023 Most Free Countries:

1. Switzerland
2. New Zealand
3. Ireland
4. Denmark
4. Norway
6. Netherlands
6. Sweden
6. Finland
9. Luxembourg
9. Estonia

2023 Most Oppressive Countries:

1. North Korea
2. Syria
3. Venezuela
4. Cuba
5. Sudan
6. Libya
7. Eritrea
8. Iran
9. Yemen
9. Turkmenistan

2023 Five Year Change in Liberty. Blue is an increase in rank by >20 and green >10. Orange is a fall in rank of >10 and red >20 since 2019.

2023 Greatest 5 Year Increase:

1. The Gambia
1. Micronesia
3. Ecuador
4. Uzbekistan
4. Samoa
6. Moldova
7. Mozambique
8. Nepal
8. Barbados
10. Djibouti
10. Sao Tome y Principe
10. Cabo Verde

2023 Greatest 5 Year Decrease:

1. Hong Kong
2. Lebanon
3. Nicaragua
4. Burkina Faso
5. El Salvador
6. Zimbabwe
7. Georgia
7. Jordan
7. Myanmar
10. India

2023 Conservative-Progressive Ranking. Grouped by quintile, red is very conservative, pink is conservative, yellow is moderate, light blue is progressive, and blue is very progressive.

The below graphs the amount of liberty enjoyed by the average citizen of a state (x-axis) by the balance of whether the state more heavily regulates economic or social behaviors (y-axis).

2023 Most Conservative:

1. Bahrain
2. United Arab Emirates
3. Singapore
4. Saudi Arabia
5. Hong Kong
6. Belarus
7. Turkmenistan
8. Azerbaijan
9. Uzbekistan
9. Tajikistan

2023 Most Progressive:

1. Argentina
2. Suriname
3. Dominica
4. Kiribati
5. Belize
6. St. Lucia
6. Barbados
8. Micronesia
9. St. Vincent and the Grenadines
9. Bahamas
9. Timor-Leste

Week 17 Men's Basketball Ranking

by Patrick Rhamey

Top 25 (Explanation; Full Ranking)

  1. Purdue (nc)

  2. Kansas (nc)

  3. Houston (+1)

  4. Kansas State (+1)

  5. Gonzaga (+2)

  6. Baylor (nc)

  7. Alabama (-4)

  8. Connecticut (nc)

  9. UCLA (+1)

  10. West Virginia (+1)

  11. Texas (-2)

  12. Arizona (+2)

  13. Marquette (nc)

  14. San Diego State (-2)

  15. St. Mary’s (nc)

  16. Virginia (nc)

  17. Tennessee (+1)

  18. Duke (+3)

  19. NC State (-2)

  20. Miami (nc)

  21. Auburn (+3)

  22. Missouri (-3)

  23. Arkansas (-1)

  24. Illinois (+5)

  25. TCU (-2)

Week 16 Men's Basketball Ranking

by Patrick Rhamey

Top 25 (Explanation; Full Ranking)

  1. Purdue (+1)

  2. Kansas (-1)

  3. Alabama (nc)

  4. Houston (nc)

  5. Kansas State (nc)

  6. Baylor (nc)

  7. Gonzaga (+5)

  8. Connecticut (+3)

  9. Texas (-2)

  10. UCLA (-2)

  11. West Virginia (+5)

  12. San Diego State (+3)

  13. Marquette (nc)

  14. Arizona (nc)

  15. St. Mary’s (+3)

  16. Virginia (-6)

  17. NC State (+2)

  18. Tennessee (-1)

  19. Missouri (+7)

  20. Miami (-11)

  21. Duke (+3)

  22. Arkansas (-1)

  23. TCU (-1)

  24. Auburn (-4)

  25. Indiana (nc)

Week 15 Men's Basketball Ranking

by Patrick Rhamey

Alabama loses to Tennessee, who then promptly turns around and loses to Kentucky. Some reshuffling in this week’s ranking.

Top 25 (Explanation; Full Ranking)

  1. Kansas (+2)

  2. Purdue (nc)

  3. Alabama (-2)

  4. Houston (+1)

  5. Kansas State (-1)

  6. Baylor (nc)

  7. Texas (nc)

  8. UCLA (nc)

  9. Miami (+4)

  10. Virginia (+2)

  11. Connecticut (-2)

  12. Gonzaga (-2)

  13. Marquette (+1)

  14. Arizona (+2)

  15. San Diego State (-4)

  16. West Virginia (-1)

  17. Tennessee (+3)

  18. St. Mary’s (+1)

  19. NC State (-2)

  20. Auburn (+3)

  21. Arkansas (-3)

  22. TCU (+4)

  23. Iowa State (-2)

  24. Duke (+7)

  25. Indiana (+2)

Week 14 Men's Basketball Ranking

by Patrick Rhamey

Top 25 (Explanation; Full Ranking)

  1. Alabama (+1)

  2. Purdue (-1)

  3. Kansas (nc)

  4. Kansas State (nc)

  5. Houston (nc)

  6. Baylor (+1)

  7. Texas (-1)

  8. UCLA (nc)

  9. Connecticut (nc)

  10. Gonzaga (+4)

  11. San Diego State (nc)

  12. Virginia (+8)

  13. Miami (+3)

  14. Marquette (-2)

  15. West Virginia (+2)

  16. Arizona (-3)

  17. NC State (+5)

  18. Arkansas (+1)

  19. St. Mary’s (-4)

  20. Tennessee (-10)

  21. Iowa State (+2)

  22. Mississippi State (+8)

  23. Auburn (-5)

  24. Missouri (+8)

  25. Florida Atlantic (+3)

Week 13 Men's Basketball Ranking

by Patrick Rhamey

Top 25 (Explanation; Full Ranking)

  1. Purdue (nc)

  2. Alabama (+1)

  3. Kansas (-1)

  4. Kansas State (nc)

  5. Houston (+1)

  6. Texas (+2)

  7. Baylor (-2)

  8. UCLA (+3)

  9. Connecticut (+3)

  10. Tennessee (-3)

  11. San Diego State (-1)

  12. Marquette (+4)

  13. Arizona (+1)

  14. Gonzaga (-5)

  15. St. Mary’s (+5)

  16. Miami (+3)

  17. West Virginia (+4)

  18. Auburn (+4)

  19. Arkansas (+8)

  20. Virginia (-5)

  21. New Mexico (-4)

  22. NC State (+1)

  23. Iowa State (+1)

  24. TCU (+1)

  25. Wisconsin (+5)

Week 12 Men's Basketball Ranking

by Patrick Rhamey

Top 25 (Explanation; Full Ranking)

  1. Purdue (+2)

  2. Kansas (+2)

  3. Alabama (-2)

  4. Kansas State (+1)

  5. Baylor (+6)

  6. Houston (+1)

  7. Tennessee (+6)

  8. Texas (-2)

  9. Gonzaga (nc)

  10. San Diego State (+2)

  11. UCLA (-3)

  12. Connecticut (-2)

  13. Florida Atlantic (+2)

  14. Arizona (+5)

  15. Virginia (+3)

  16. Marquette (+5)

  17. New Mexico (nc)

  18. Charleston (-16)

  19. Miami (-3)

  20. St. Mary’s (+2)

  21. West Virginia (+9)

  22. Auburn (-12)

  23. NC State (+6)

  24. Iowa State (-4)

  25. TCU (nc)

Week 11 Men's Basketball Ranking

by Patrick Rhamey

Top 25 (Explanation; Full Ranking)

  1. Alabama (+1)

  2. Charleston (+3)

  3. Purdue (+3)

  4. Kansas (-1)

  5. Kansas State (+3)

  6. Texas (+3)

  7. Houston (-6)

  8. UCLA (-1)

  9. Gonzaga (-5)

  10. Auburn (+3)

  11. Baylor (+5)

  12. San Diego State (+9)

  13. Tennessee (+4)

  14. Connecticut (-4)

  15. Florida Atlantic (+7)

  16. Miami (-2)

  17. New Mexico (+7)

  18. Virginia (nc)

  19. Arizona (+6)

  20. Iowa State (-5)

  21. Marquette (-1)

  22. St. Mary’s (-3)

  23. Wisconsin (+4)

  24. UNC (+6)

  25. TCU (+1)